The works of Francis Bacon, lord chancellor of England.

xviii LIFE OF BACON.
echo;" and, in his twelfth year he was meditating both admitted of Trinity College, under the care
upon the laws of the imagination.s of Dr. John Whitgift,4 a friend of the lord keepAt the early age of thirteen, it was resolved to er's, then master of the college, afterwards Archsend him to Cambridge, of which university, he, bishop of Canterbury, and distinguished through
with his brother Anthony, was matriculated as a life, not only for his piety, but for his great learnmember, on the 10th of June, 1573.3 They were ing, and unwearied exertions to promote the public
good.
Tile laws of sound were always a subject of his What must have passed in his youthful,
thoughts. In the third century of the Sylva, he says, "we What must have passed in his youthful,
have laboured, as may appear, in this inquisition of sounds thoughtful, ardent mind, at this eventful moment,
diligently; both because sound is one of the most hidden his father's enae
portions of nature, and because it is a virtue which may be when he first quitted his father's house to engage
called incorporeal and inmmateriate, whereof there be in na- in active life T What must have been his feelture but few."
As one of the facts, he says in his Sylva Sylvarum, (Art. ings when he approached the university, and saw,
140,) "There is in St. James's fields a conduit of brick, unto in the distance, the lofty spires, and towers, and
which joineth a low vault; and at the end of that a round
hlouse of stone; and in the brick conduit there is a window; venerable walls, raised by intellect and piety,
and in the round house a slit or rift of some little breadth: and hollowed the sh t
if you cry out in the rift, it will make a fearful roaring at the by
window. The cause is, for that all concaves, that proceed of the mighty dead are preserved and reposed,5
from more narrow to more broad, do amplify the sound at and by the labours of the mighty living, ith
the conting out. and by the labours of the m ighty living with
a In the tenth century of the Sylva, after having enume- joint fores directing their strength against nature
rated nany of the idle imnaginations by which the world then
was, and, more or less, always will be, nmisled, he says, herself, to take her high towers, and dismantle
"With these vast and bottomless follies mien have been inorders
part entertained. But we, that hold firm to the works of her fortified holds, and thus enlarge the borders
God., and to the sense, which is God's lamp, lucerna Dei spi- of man's dominion, so far as Almighty God of his
racuhuln hoininis, will inquire with all sobriety and severity, goodness shall permit
vwhether there be to be found in the footsteps of nature, any gooness permit V'6
such transmission and influx of immateriate virtues: and "4 As water," he says, " whether it be the dew
what the force of imagination is, either upon the body imaginant, or upon another body." of heaven, or the sprigs of the earth, doth scatter
He then proceeds to state the different kinds of the power and lose itself in the ground, except it be collected
of itagination, saying it is in three kinids: the first, upon the
body of the iltaginant, including likewise the child in the mo- into some receptacle, where it may by union
ther's womb; the second is, the power of it upon dead bodies, comfort and sustain itself, and for that cause the
as plants, wood, stone, metal, &c.; the third is, the power of
it upon the spirits of men andliving creatures; and with this industry of man hath made and framed spring
last wve will only meddle.
Tihe problem therefore is, whether a man constantly and heads, conduits, cisterns, and pools, which men
strongly believing that such a thing shall be; as that such a have accustomed likewise to beautify and adorn
one will love him; or that such a one will grant him his request; or that such a one shall recover a sickness, or tle with accomplishments of magnificence and state,
like, it doth help any thing to the effecting of the thing as well as of use and necessity; so this excellent
I, the solutioneofthis problem he, according to his custom, liquor of knowledge, whether it descend from
enutmerates a variety/ of instances, and, among others, the divine or spring from human sense,
following fact, whictoccurred to him when a child, for he inspiration,
hltt hils,f'tllels" hoe twhen he Was thirteen, would soon perish and vanish to oblivion, if it were
For example, he $Sty~ 1 eltated one time to a man,atwas, traditions, conferences, and
tuitious and vain enoulgh in these things that I saw a kind not preserved in books, traditions, conferences, and
of juggler, tlmat/had a pair of cards, atid would tell a man places appointed; as universities, colleges, and
what card he phought. This pretended learned nta1 told me,
that it wvas a tnistaking in me; for, said he, it was not the schools, for the receipt and comforting of the
knowledge/of man's thought, (for that is proper to God,) but same. All tending to quietness and privateness
it was the enforcing of a thought upon him, and binding his
imagination by a stronger, that he could think no other card. of life, and discharge of cares and troubles; much
And thereupon he asked me a question or two, which I like the stations which Virgil prescribeth for the
thought he did but cunningly, knowing before what used to
be the feats of the juggler. Sir, said he, do you remember hiving of bees:
whether he told the card the man thought himself, or bade
another to tell it. I answered, (as was true,) that lie bade Principio sedes apibus stadioque petenda,
another tell it. Whereunto he said. so I thought; for, saiduo neqe sit vetis adits, etc.
he, himself could not have put on so strong an imagination,
but by telling the other the card, who believed that the juggler was some strange man, and could do strange things, See the Biog. trit. In 1565, Whitgift so distinguishied
that other man caught a strong imuagination. I hearkened himself in the pulpit, that the lord keeper recommended him
unto him, thinking for a vanity he spoke prettily. Then he to the queen.
asked me another question; saith he, do you remember whe- 5 But the works touching books are chiefly two; first, Librutther he bade the utant think the card first, and afterwards ries, wherein, as in famous shrines, the relics of the antold the other man in his ear what he should think, or else cient saints, full ofvirtue, are reposed. Secondly, NJ'ew Edithat he did whisper first in the man's ear, that he should tell tions of.qtluthors, with correct intpressiouns; more faithful
the card, telling that such a man should think such a card, Translations, more profitableglosses, more diligent annotations;
and after bade the man think a card: I told him, as was with the like train ftmrnished and adorned.
true, that he did first wihisper the man in the ear, that such In a letter to Sir Thomas Bodley, he says, " and the second
a uman should think such a card; upon this the learned man copy I have sent unto you, not only in good affection, but ill
did much exult, and please himself, eaying, lo, you may see a kind of congruity, in regard of your great and rare desert
that Imy opinion is right; for if the man had thought first, his of learning. For books are the shrines where the saint is, or
thouught had been fixed; but the other imagining first, bound is believed to be. And you, having built an ark to save
his thought. Which, though it did somewhat sink with me, learning from deluge, deserve propriety in any new instrlyet I inmade lighter than I thought, and said, I thought it was ment or engine, whereby learning should be improved or adconfederacy oetween the juggler and the two servants; vanced."-Steph. 19.
though, indeed, I had no reason so to think; for they were 6 Nor doth our trumpet summon, and encourage men to
both my father's servants, and he had never played in the tear and rend one another with contradictions; and in a civil
house before. rage to bear arms, and wage war against themselves; but
3 An. 1573, June 10. Antonius Bacon Coll. Trin. Convict. rather, a peace concluded between them, they may with
i. admissus in matriculam Acad. Cantabr. joint force direct their strength against Nature lherself; and
Franciscus Bacon Coll. Trio. Convict. i. admissus in ma- take her high towers, and dismantle her fortified holds; and
triculam academixe Cantabr. eodein die et anno. (Regr. thus enlarge the borders of man's dorinion, so far as Al
cdad.) mighty God in his goodness shall permit.-.-ddr. Learn.